SOCCER star Chris Byrne spoke for the first time from his hospital bed since he was shot at close range in the leg by a gang of masked men.

He had a message for his loyal followers back home: "Tell them I'm all right," he said. "They are good fans in Macclesfield."

Fears for his footballing future were still very real as he lay in hospital after the shooting near his mother's house in Manchester.

He said he still didn't know when he would play again and that he was concentrating on getting better first.

"I've just been shot and nearly killed so I'm pretty annoyed," he said from his hospital bed in a ward shared with five other patients.

"I haven't even seen many family and friends because I don't feel like talking."

Chris confirmed the gang were trying to steal his car when the attack happened.

"Just getting over this is bad enough," he said. "I can't remember much about what happened and I can't face going through it all again."

He added that he would probably be laid up for another couple of months.

But team mate Danny Adams was hopeful that he would see his pal back on the pitch.

Adams said: "I think if anybody can come back from an injury like that, Chris can. He's strong enough mentally and physically.

"He's really missed round the club - he's one of the jokers - and on the pitch of course because of his goals."

He added: "It was awful seeing him in hospital on Sunday two days after it happened, he looked so weak. But by Friday there was already a massive difference in him.

"He was almost back to being fit as well before it happened - another week or two and he would have been all right."

But even though he is injured and laid up in bed for the foreseeable future Chris did have a message of hope for the Macc Town fans who are keen to see the club's star goalscorer back on the pitch. "Tell them I'm alight" he said.

The 27-year-old was shot as he was going home for tea at his mum's house in Hulme in Manchester.

Police say the masked gunmen were after Chris's black BMW but failed to steal it after they shot him.

His mum Pat said: "They jumped all over him - he didn't know who they were because they had masks on, but you don't think somebody's going to shoot you do you?"

Macc Town chairman Colin Garlick who visited Chris in hospital said: "I don't think we are going to know anything for certain about Chris's situation for four to six weeks."

David Moss said after the match on Saturday: "Chris is going to be in hospital for another two weeks.

"It's too early to say what the extent of the damage is but speaking to the doctors it's a very serious injury which is going to take months to heal.